Valve for automobile drip-pans.



T. A. YAPP. I VALVE FOB. AUTOMOBILE DRIP FANS. APPLIOA'I'IOII FILED MAY 24, 1909.

942,232. Patented Dec. 7,1909;

ATTORNEY UNITED STATES PATENT orrron.

THOMAS A. YAIEP, OF BUFFALO, NEW YORK, ASSIG-NOR TO E. R. THOMAS MOTOR COM- PANY, OLE BUFFALO, NEW YORK, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

VALVE FOR AUTOMOBILE DRIP-FANS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed May 24, 1909. Serial-No. 497,960.

underneath the driving and other mechan-. ism so as to catch the waste 011 dropping from the same and prevent the samegfrom reaching the street or floor. This Oll has usually been removed from time to time from the pan through an outlet or drain in the bottom thereof which Was normally closed by a screw ca applied to the lower end of the outlet. cause of the difliculty' in gaining access to the drain and for the further reason that when the cap is removed from the lower end of the drain by hand the latter is unavoidably deluged with oil, grease and dirt which escape immediately upon removal of the drain cap. Owing to the unpleasantness attending the removal of the waste oil in,

this manner the operators are very much inclined to let the oil accumulate in the pan where it becomes thick and finally spills over the sides of the pan thus rendering the owner of the automobile liable under the law.

The object of this invention is to provide a valve for the drip or oil pans of automobiles which will reliably close the drain when in use and which can be easily and conveniently opened to permit of discharging the oil in the pan'through said drain without liability of soiling the hands, thereby leading to more frequent emptying of the drip pan.

In the accompanying drawings Figure l is a top plan view of a drip pan provided with my improved drain valve. Fig. 2 is a vertical section of the same.

Similar letters of reference refer to like parts in both figures.

A represents the pan or tray which is suspended below the' driving mechanism and associated parts of the automobile inany suitable manner and which catches the drippings of oil and grease'from said mechanism. The bottom of this pan slopes toward an outlet or drain opening 6 which is pref- T is is objectionable beerably arranged near the center of the pan and through which the oil and grease in the pan is discharged downwardly. This drain or outlet is closed when the pan is in use but opened when the same is to be emptied of its contents. My improved valve whereby this drain is controlled is constructed as follows :--B represents an annular valve seat or ring which is arranged underneath the pan and which together with a packing ring a of leather or other suitable material interposed between the underside of the pan and the upperside of the valve ring is secured to the pan by rivets c or otherwise. Above the Patented Dec. '7, 1909.

bottom of the pan and extending across the drain or outlet thereof is a transverse guide bar D which has a central guide opening and which is secured at opposite ends to the top of the pan bottom by two of the rivets c which fasten the valve ring and packing to the underside of the same.

J E represents a' valve disk, stopperor clo-- sure whichisadapted to move verticall toward and from the seat on the underside of the valve ring for opening and closing the port or passage therein and which has a packing disk e secured to its face or upper side by means of rivets f or otherwise for producing a tight joint with the valve ring when closed. This valve disk is guided in its movement toward and from the valve ring by an upright valve stem G which is secured at its lower end by a screw joint with the central part of the valve disk while its central part is guided in the central opening of the transverse guide bar D. The valve disk is yieldingly held in its elevated closed position by a spring H surrounding the upper part of the valve stem and hearing at its lower end against the top of the guide bar while its upper end bears against the under side of a head or collar I which is secured to the upper end of the valve stem by a transverse cotter or pin i or otherwise.

- WVhen the pan is in use the valve disk is held tight against the valve ring by the spring so as to close the valve drain, thereby causing the oil dripping'from the driving mechanism to be caught and collect in the pan. When it is desired to empty the pan it is only necessary to push the valve disk down by applying a downward pressure to the upper end of. the valve stem, thereby moving thevalve disk away from the valve 30 v bar secured to the upper side 0 ring and uncovering the drain or outlet so that the contents of the pan can escape throughthe same;

To permit of conveniently opening the valve disk without engaging the stem by hand the head I has its upper side constructed in the form of an upwardly opening cup or pocket j, as shown in the drawings, which pocket is adapted to receivethe front end of a stick or slmilar instrument in the hands of the operator and permits the latter to depress the valve disk without reaching the hand under the drivin mechanism. By this means not only the ands of the operator are saved from becoming soiled as is the case when removing the cap from the underside of the drain opening as has been customary heretofore but it also preventsgetting oil-and grease on the clothing and the operation of emptying the pan isrendered more convenient so that a person is likely to empty the pan before the oil has accumulated to such an extent as would cause it'to spill or splash over the sides of the pan.

Iclaim as my invention:

1. A valve for the drain openings of automobile drip pans comprising a valve ring adapted to. be secured to the'underside of said pan around its drain opening, a guide said pan across said opening, a valve disk movable toward and from the underside of said ring, a valve stem connected at its lower end with the disk and guided with its central part in said bar, a head arranged on the upper end of said stem and a spring interposed between said bar and head and operating to hold the disk yieldingly in its closed position.

2. A valve for the drain openings of automobile drip pans comprising a valve ring adapted to be secured to the underside of said pan around its drain opening, a guide bar secured to the upper side of said pan across said opening, a valve disk movable toward and from the underside of said rlng,

a valve stem connected at its lower end with THOMAS A. YAPP.

Witnesses:

THEo. L. Porr, ANNA Harare. 

